Comments
Gregory VIBE: one little bag.............. SO MUCH ROOM
Friday, October 9, 2009 at 10:14AM I have a problem–I have too many messenger bags for bike commuting. How I got all of them, I am not entirely sure, but last spring when I wandered into the BACKPACKER office and I was offered the Gregory Vibe bag ($96) to test I questioned the need to introduce another bike commuter pack into my life. My wife [a BP staffer] did as well and said that if I held onto the pack for over a month I had to give an old messenger bag to Goodwill. I took the bait.
My initial thoughts upon seeing the pack were not pleasant. First, the Vibe looks like a backpack. Why should I use a backpack when all the cool riders have messenger bags? There was a time, in grade school, when all the cool kids started wearing their backpacks with only one strap –soon everyone else, myself included, started to as well. Eventually, I reached a point in high school or college where I was carrying so many engineering textbooks that I decided fashion over function is a foolish idea.
For me, going from a messenger bag to the Vibe was the same revelation. Suddenly my back and shoulders felt infinitely better post commute. The straps have an ergonomic design to form around your chest while riding; they also contain just enough padding to be comfortable without being overly bulky. Additionally the back has some mesh padding, with a gap along the spinal column, to ease the discomfort of heavy loads.
My next concern was the size of the pack (10.5 x 25 x 46 cm, 835 g). It looked small, and compared to the Novara messenger bag I had been using for the past three years, it was. I typically end up leaving a number of important items at work to lighten my load but to really test the Vibe I filled it with my work clothes, a pair of shoes, a towel, laptop, and a lunch sack. Everything fit in, albeit tightly, and I remembered an overused expression from my father that "anything above the minimum is a waste" (you can argue for yourself when to apply that statement).
My final issue with the pack was the rubber-esque TBU fabric using EPO (Environment Pollution Omitting) technology; I have no idea what that scientifically means other than, apparently, it is all very environmentally friendly (toxin, PVC, and chlorine free) and water resistant. Now, I live in Colorado where it barely rains, so why would I need a super water-resistant pack? But this spring and summer turned out to be the wettest in the last five years in Boulder. The Vibe did an excellent job keeping all my stuff dry, even around the edges—the usual weak spot on most messenger bags. And hopefully the EPO will not show up if I ever have a doping test...
When all of my initial complaints were proven false, the Vibe also surprised me with an unexpected bonus. After more than a month of commuting with it I "discovered" a wondrous side stash pocket. Previously, I stored all my emergency bike repair gear scattered on the bottom of the bag’s main compartment and monopolizing the front organization pocket. The stash pocket is the perfect size to fit a mini-pump, tire levers, multi-tool, and a spare tube freeing the front pocket for its intended duty as my wallet, phone, and keys holder.
If you find my old messenger bag at Goodwill I wish you the best– I am sticking with the Vibe.
–Dan Corbett
You can follow Dan's (usually) clothed outdoor escapades on his blog, climbtrees.com.
via: backpacker.com
Reader Comments (2)
Dan,
I liked this bag a little better when we came out with the same design 2 years ago. I understand that sometimes things get missed when innovation sprouts from a small company. Check out the POE website and look for the Metcouver (old name) or the NEW and Improved Velocio. A commuter's dream, PVC free as always, more reflective, easy to use, and a sleeker design. I like Gregory bags, but they should stick to large packs and stop copying the small guys commuter gems.
cheers,
aaron
Hi Aaron,
John Sears here, the Director of Product Development over at Gregory. I couldn't help but notice your comments on the similarities of two of our products, so I thought I would check it out. I personally don't see enough functional or aesthetic similarities to justify the suggestion that we copied your design. In fact, the designer of the Vibe hasn't see your messenger products until we looked them up due to your post.
In the spirit of design, I'm happy to swap you a sample of our Vibe for your Velocio, if you'd like to take a closer look, but I can assure you our design philosophies here at Gregory are based in innovation and unique design solutions, as I'm sure you'll find if you dig a littler deeper. Also, if you'd like to check out any more of our lifestyle product, which is a meaningful portion of our business, please go check out our Japanese website. The lifestyle products you'll see on this site will give you a window into the success we've been having for the last 25 years with authentic Gregory shoulder bag products.
No worries though Aaron...we love engaging with folks that we share a common passion for product design with! Give me a call anytime.
The links to both product are below.
Cheers,
John
http://www.usoutdoorstore.com/outlet/pacific-outdoor-velocio-messenger-bag.html
http://www.gregorypacks.com/products/mens/lifestyle/58/vibe